Long Live Chen Yiyang
Chen Yiyang had no idea when he became the "Big Bad Guy."
Yun Mi was flustered, trying to explain to Ding Yuan. Hearing his question, she dropped her face, lowered her eyes, and said, "What if I said a demon controlled me to change the nickname? Would you believe it?"
Chen Yiyang said, "No."
Yun Mi looked up: "?"
Under the streetlight, the boy's cool profile was cut by the light.
His nose bridge was high. He squinted toward the end of the road, his tone teasing: "There's a monthly exam coming. Demons aren't that free."
"..."
Chen Yiyang was dead.
After taking a shower, Yun Mi remembered what happened in the evening, jumped onto the bed, grabbed a toy pig, and started beating it.
Her mind was a mess. She didn't even know how to face Chen Yiyang anymore.
She explained to Ding Yuan, who replied with "My feelings were misplaced," reluctantly forgave her, and told her there was good news and bad news.
Bad news: She and Chen Yiyang were rumored to be together.
Good news: She was the victim; Chen Yiyang was in a one-sided, torturous relationship, and no one blamed her.
Ding Yuan was chattering, "Good thing, good thing."
Yun Mi looked at the desk full of exercise books and the 89-point quiz paper, then collapsed onto the bed, thinking it would be better if she were the one torturing him.
If she offended Chen Yiyang, what if he stopped teaching her?
After all, he was an incredibly petty person.
Yun Mi rubbed her face, trying to pull herself together, when suddenly she heard a "smack."
Startled.
The deafening noise came from downstairs.
The living room on the first floor was as bright as day.
But the usually spotless hall was now in disarray. The delicate white-glazed vase that normally stood by the entrance was shattered on the floor, along with the flower branches inside, tilting and broken.
It looked like there had just been a fierce battle.
Aunt Qin stood by the entrance, frowning deeply. Hearing "What's wrong?" she looked up, startled.
Seeing Yun Mi coming down the stairs holding the railing, she forced a smile, waved her hand, and said, "Nothing, nothing. I just knocked something over."
Her gaze unconsciously drifted toward the open door. Her tone paused, carrying a hint of barely noticeable awkwardness, as she added:
"Also... Xiao Yang's father is back."
"Chen Yiyang went with his father to the hospital to visit Grandpa."
...
At the top floor of Shanfu Hospital, the noise of arguing came and went from the ward.
Outside the ward, Xiao Sun, who was looking after Grandpa, looked anxious. He paced back and forth, then turned his head and asked, "Maybe we should go back? You have class tomorrow."
Chen Yiyang sat on the bench in the hallway. When he came home, he had casually taken off his school uniform jacket. In the rush to leave, he only wore a thin undershirt.
Seeing that he didn't respond, Xiao Sun asked if he was cold. Chen Yiyang said, "It's okay."
Hospital management arrived after hearing the commotion, and Xiao Sun went up to deal with them. Chen Yiyang was left alone.
The boy sat with his legs apart, elbows resting on his knees, head bowed very low. The fine hair on his forehead fell down, covering his eyes.
The hallway lights were dazzling, stretching his shadow long and thin.
Suddenly his phone rang. It was a call from Wen Liangyu. As soon as he picked up, her urgent voice couldn't be contained.
"Chen Yiyang, what's going on? Aunt Qin said the house is in chaos. Is the hospital side also causing trouble? Why would your father come back for no reason?"
Chen Yiyang's back bent slightly. His eyelashes drooped lower. His Adam's apple rolled gently. His voice was stuffy and hoarse: "I was wrong."
Wen Liangyu had just finished work and had been on edge since receiving Aunt Qin's call.
Grandpa was already in poor health—having gone to the countryside in his early years and worked hard all his life, he had accumulated a host of illnesses. Since being admitted to the hospital, he had never gone home. Everyone around him feared he wouldn't survive these two years.
Wen Liangyu could already hear faint arguing on the other end of the line. Suppressing the anxiety in her heart, she asked sternly, "What does this have to do with you?"
"I lent some money to a classmate. Her grandmother was hospitalized and needed it urgently. Chen Jici checked my bank statements and thought it was for Grandpa. I explained, and I showed him the IOU, but he didn't believe me." He paused, his voice growing softer. "I didn't know he would hold onto this."
Wen Liangyu wanted to scold him in anger and urgency: "You kid—"
She took a deep breath, suppressing the worry in her heart, and asked again, "Has it calmed down now?"
Chen Yiyang's gaze fell on the small glass window of the ward, covered with a thin mist. He lowered his eyelids.
Through the cold glass, the middle-aged man beside the hospital bed was still wearing his well-tailored suit. His chest heaved violently. His usually immaculate hair was now disheveled.
Chen Jici stood by the bed without roaring hysterically. Instead, he raised his voice, each word dripping with resentment.
He said, "Stop wasting time around here and annoying people. When my mother died, it was all because of your ridiculous sense of responsibility and face."